Keeping In Touch
by Jelsemium
Summary: Hermione keeps in touch with everybody. Her husband has a problem with this.


Keeping In Touch

By: Jill D. Weber AKA Jelsemium

Characters Owned by J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. and are used without permission or intent to make a profit.

Rating: G for Granger's Audience, I mean, General Audience

Author's Notes: This story is set AFTER the end of the series. 

***

It was a perfectly ordinary morning and a perfectly normal barn owl delivered what looked like a perfectly normal letter to Ron Weasley's wife. Ron poured his morning tea as he studied Hermione's face. He knew that smile. She'd just done something exceptionally clever and was feeling pleased with herself.

"Who's that from?" he asked casually, as he buttered his toast.

"Hm? Oh, it's from Argus," Hermione replied absently. She sipped her tea and smiled as she reread the letter.

"Argus?" Ron questioned. He couldn't remember any Argus off-hand.

"Argus Filch," Hermione elaborated.

"Argus… _Filch_?" Ron's eyes went wide.

"You remember, the caretaker at Hogwarts!" Hermione said a trifle impatiently.

"I know who you mean," Ron said, holding up his hands to stop her from saying any more. "I just can't believe that Filch wrote to you. What's he writing about?" He held out his hand for the letter.

Hermione grinned mischievously and held the letter out of reach. "Jealous?"

Ron snorted. "Of course not. I mean, if a champion seeker like Krum can't turn your head, I doubt that _Filch _will be able to. I'm curious, that's all. I'm surprised he even remembers you." The look on Hermione's face made him amend that hastily. "I mean, I'm surprised that he remembers _any _particular student."

Hermione raised an eyebrow and gave him an ironic look. "He just wanted to thank me for the carpet sweep I sent him last week."

"Carpet sweep?" Ron asked blankly.

"It's a muggle device used to remove dust and debris from floors," Hermione explained. "Muggles used them before the invention of vacuum cleaners."

"Vacuum cleaners?"

Hermione sighed. "Honestly, Ron, you and your father have dissected enough of my parents' household appliances; you _should _remember what a vacuum cleaner is. Anyway, carpet sweeps don't use electricity like vacuum cleaners do, so Argus can use them in the castle…"

"_Why _did you send Filch a carpet sweeper?" demanded Ron.

"Well, he said that students had been using Weasley Sparkle Wands in the library and that it was hard to get the glitter up. Naturally, I sent him something…"

"_What_! You mean to tell me that Filch decided that since Fred and George are your brothers-in-law that means he could pester you about the fallout of their…"

Hermione tutted. "Of _course _not, he just _mentioned _the Sparkle Wands in passing. _I'm _the one who decided that I should do something about it. It's not fair to make the poor man's work harder…"

"Mentioned in _passing_?" Ron's voice went up a notch. "Mentioned _when_?"

"In one of his letters," Hermione said, becoming more exasperated by the moment.

"This _isn't _the first letter he sent you?" Ron's voice went up a little more.

"_Obviously _not," Hermione replied. "We've written many times."

"You write to Filch!?"

"I try to keep in touch with all of my friends, even the single, solitary friend that I had in Muggle school," Hermione's patience was fast evaporating.

"You write to FILCH!?"

"Speaking of keeping in touch," she added peevishly. "Harry wants to know who chopped your hands off. He says you haven't owled him in ages."

"You WRITE to _FILCH_!?"

"Well, I don't find making friends to be easy, so I've got to hang on to the ones that I have," Hermione scowled. "There, happy? I admit that there's something I'm bad at besides divination."

"Yes, I mean, no, I mean, I think you're, well, I guess, I just never thought of Filch as being a _friend_!"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Ron!" She stood up abruptly. "This is ridiculous. I'm going to my study to answer my mail. I suggest you start answering your mail before you start _losing _friends!"

"I…" Ron did actually recognize warning signs. He didn't always heed them, but this time he decided to quit arguing. He shook his head, sighed and threw up his hands. "Fine, whatever. Do as you please." He snorted. "Next thing I know, you'll be telling me that you're corresponding with _Snape_."

Hermione almost answered that, but stopped herself and headed for her study. She made a mental note to warn Severus to stop putting his return address on his envelopes. There were some things Ron was simply better off not knowing.

W W W 

End Notes: This story was inspired by the excellent Filch stories by Ozma. Check out her Squib chronicles at FanFiction.net to find out why.


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